Best International Markets in Manchester

According to researchers at The University of Manchester, Manchester is the language capital of the UK.

Forty per cent of Manchester’s young people and 50 per cent of the city’s adult population are likely to be multilingual, according to the same research. Manchester is a city packed full of diverse cultures, which can be seen throughout the ‘second city’ of the United Kingdom. The findings won’t exactly come as a surprise for the people of Manchester.

One way Manchester boasts such multiculturalism is through its shared love of food. Throughout our city, we are spoilt for choice. In this blog post, we aim to take you on a journey around Manchester to find food from all over the world. 

Venus Foods

Venus Foods is the place to go in Manchester if you are looking to eat Turkish or Mediterranean. The sheer range of food may be overwhelming, but it’s undoubtedly going to be more interesting than a standard weekly shop. Fresh baking of Turkish Bread (Pide) and Turkish Sweets (Baklava) happens in-store, and you’ll be pleased
to find a restaurant that serves up kebabs until late every night.

Venus Foods is also a wholesaler to many other Turkish and Mediterranean eateries throughout Manchester.

Venus Foods, 45-49 Anson Rd, Manchester M14 5DE
0161 256 1110
www.venusfoods.co.uk

Hang Wong Hong

There quite a few Asian supermarkets in the city including Wing Yip, Woo Sang and Hello Orient, but we wanted to focus on Hang Wong Hong, based in Chinatown. There is absolutely everything you could need here to immerse yourself into Chinese and Asian cooking fully.

Much of the food is made locally but in a traditional Asian way, such as pork balls, dumplings, sliced meats, dim-sum, and seafood. Vegetable produce is also imported from Asia.

There is every conceivable variety of herbal tea, imported from different parts of China, as well as grass-jelly drinks and soy milk. Hang Wong Hong is also the place for authentic Japanese sake.

Hang Wong Hong, 58-60 George St, Manchester M1 4HF
0161 228 6182
https://tuktukmart.co.uk/

Barbakan

Barbakan isn’t strictly a supermarket as such, more a continental bakery and deli but absolutely deserved to make our list. It’s not directly in Manchester’s centre, but it’s worth a venture out into the wider city, to Chorley.

Manchester is the home of Barbakan, a nationally award-winning craft bakery, for over 50 years. Starting out selling four different kinds of continental loaves, that has now risen to over 75 hand-moulded varieties, such as the Award-Winning German Norlander, French Campagrain, Italian Contadina, Polish Black, and the famous
Chorlton Sourdough. Also expect cakes, savouries and pastries. Their Saturday sausage stall is not to be missed, we are more than a little keen on the bratwurst!

The team here produce over 15,000 loaves per week and get through over nine tonnes of flour per week! Everything here is 100% vegetarian, 90% vegan, and uses absolutely no additives. 755 people seem to agree as they have given Barbakan 4.6 out of 5 on Google.

Barbakan, 67-71 Manchester Rd, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester M21 9PW
0161 881 7053
https://www.barbakan-deli.co.uk/

Let us know if you have been to Venus Foods, Hang Wong Hong or Barbakan, or plan on going any time soon.